Glenelg Ferry

The Glenachulish on the Skye Side of the Kyle Rhea

Some people will be surprised to find out that you can still travel
"over the sea to Skye". Yes, most know that there's a
ferry operating from
Mallaig to
Armadale at the toe of
Skye. But how many also know that from Easter
to October there's a vehicle ferry that still provides a much closer
alternative to the Skye Bridge, and one
every visitor should consider taking?

The Kyle Rhea was the earliest regular crossing point to the
Isle of Skye. The crossing was so important
that after the 1715 uprising the Government built nearby Bernera Barracks to
guard it. A regular ferry was well established here by 1773 when
Boswell and
Johnson made their tour of
the Hebrides. The cobbled pier used then can still be seen close to the slipway
used by the ferry today on the Glenelg side. (Continues below image...)

The Ferry Unloading on the Skye Side of the Crossing

Although this is the shortest crossing point to
Skye, it can also be a daunting place because
of the tidal flow funneling between Skye and the mainland. The 1878 Edition of
the Royal Tourist Handbook to the Highlands and Islands warned that in Kyle
Rhea "the tides race at 7 and 8 miles an hour, and with a head gale might
baffle the steamers to force a passage. In southerly storms the wind against
the tide creates an extraordinary uproar".

The Kylerhea ferry is reached on the mainland side by a ten mile
road that leaves the main A87 at Shiel Bridge. This follows a magnificent route that is
almost alpine in character over the Mam Ratagan Pass. This road was built in 1815
(and rebuilt in the 1980s) to replace the earlier route
used by the military to get to Bernera Barracks.

On the Skye side the road from
Kylerhea connects to the main Broadford
to Kyleakin road via a not so long but
equally mountainous single track road. For more information about Scotland's
single track roads and how to drive them, visit our feature page on
driving single track
roads.

The ferry used on the crossing is the Glenachulish, which can
transport up to six cars plus standing-room only for foot passengers. She was
built at the Ailsa Yard in Troon in
1969 to serve on the Ballachulish ferry
crossing. After the opening of the Ballachulish Bridge in 1975 she went on to
act as a relief vessel on the ferry crossings at
Corran,Kylesku and Kessock, near
Inverness, two of which have
also since been replaced by bridges. The Glenachulish has served on the Glenelg
to Kylerhea route since 1982 and is the last turntable ferry in operation. (Our
thanks to John MacLeod for the story of the Glenachulish.)

Every visitor to Skye should
consider going by ferry. After all, although the Skye Bridge is a wonderful structure, crossing
it only takes you to Skye. To get to the Isle of
Skye, you need to travel by sea. The two Skyes are equally wonderful, but somehow the
Isle of Skye feels just that little bit more special. With the
removal of tolls from the Skye Bridge, a
question mark hung over the viability and operation of the
Glenelg to Kylerhea Ferry until
a community buyout was confirmed in early 2007. The ferry has since been operated by the Skye
Ferry Community Interest Company. It deserves to succeed, and
visitors who care about maintaining choice in the future will want to support
the ferry in the most practical way possible: by using it.